清宮破產 簪子也繁花落盡 Qing Dynasty gradually declined, hair pins were getting simplified.
當我發現清宮在1860年之後開始以銀銅合金製作簪子而少用金、玉、珍珠、寶石的原因後, 心裏有點震驚, 彷彿我也親身經歷了那一場國之將亡的歷史巨變, 想來有點後怕啊!
I really stunned when I discovered the reason why, after 1860, a lot of Qing Dynasty royal hair pins were made of silver copper alloy instead of gold, jade, pearl and gems. I couldn’t help feeling strongly anxious and deeply worried about the empire's fortune as if I was at the era.
字幕：
印象中 故宮的簪子都是璀璨無比的,金鑲玉 銀鍍金 鑲嵌各種頂級珠寶.然而這些都是1860年之前的繁華。
由於清廷在1840~1901之間接連戰敗, 共需賠款17億兩白銀 外加龐大利息,清宮越來越無力奢華了,1860年開始簡約起來。
[鴉片戰爭(一) 1840: 廣州條約1841&南京條約1842 ,賠款 1800萬兩 白銀]
[鴉片戰爭(二) 1860:天津條約1858＆北京條約1860, 賠款 1600 萬兩 白銀]
[甲午戰爭1894: 馬關條約1895, 賠款 6.7 億兩 白銀]
[庚子事變1900: 辛丑條約1901, 賠款10 億兩 白銀]
[共 17.6 億兩 白銀]
以銀銅合金製作簪子,儘管身價一落千丈,造辦處 依然精雕細琢 ,盡可能保住皇家尊嚴。
直到清末民初 ,清宮山窮水盡了, 銀簪子也繁花落盡 ,最後消瘦得只剩下一個骨架。
Subtitles:
Qing Dynasty gradually declined, hair pins were getting simplified.
I have been impressed by gorgeous hair pins stored in National Palace Museum.
Gold inlaid with jade, silver-plated, inlaid with all kinds of top jewelry.
However, they were almost before 1860.
Because of being beat by various western countries during 1840~1901,
Qing Dynasty got huge debt, 1.7 billion taels of silver plus high interest.
[First Opium War, 1840]
[Second Opium War, 1860]
[Sino-Japanese War, 1895]
[The Boxer Incident, 1900]
Royal Palace couldn’t afford luxurious lifestyle anymore.
It was forced to reduce expenses from 1860.
Therefore, making hair pins of silver copper alloy.
Although the value of hair pins was getting down,
metalwork masters in Royal Studio still worked hard to produce skillfully.
It’s all for maintaining royal dignity of Qing Dynasty.
Up to the last dozens of years of Qing Dynasty,
Royal Palace gradually hardly sustained,
hair pins were getting more and more simplified.
At last, it was merely a skeleton at all.
參考文獻 References: